


Humble Beginnings

by echoflowertea



Series: Surviving [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Female Reader, Gen, Reader Is Not Frisk, Reader is ACE, Reader is FAT
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-12
Updated: 2016-04-24
Packaged: 2018-06-01 22:20:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6538750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/echoflowertea/pseuds/echoflowertea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Once upon a time, you fell Underground.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Responsibility

**Author's Note:**

> Post-Neutral/Flawed Pacifist run. Frisk crossed the barrier after Flowey killed Asgore, leaving monsters trapped underground. 
> 
> For more info, you can check out my [fic 'verse page](http://echoflowertea.tumblr.com/ficverse) on tumblr.

“I’m not good with kids,” you told her, the worry already laced in your voice. Her suggestion was meant well, but she didn’t understand where you were coming from. You saw a trace of confusion flit across her face and decided to elaborate. “I mean. I never grew up around them or anything. So I don’t have much experience in dealing with them. I don’t know how to…ACT. So maybe this isn’t such a good idea. I feel like you have a lot of other options.”

She gazed at you pointedly. “Nonsense, my child. This job is perfect for you. Given what you have already shown me, I would say it is a perfect fit.”

“Your Majesty--”

She held up a paw and silenced you mid-sentence. For someone that didn’t like to be referred to as royalty, she sure did have a commanding presence. “No more of that, please. It is just Toriel to you.”

“Toriel,” you continued, wary of her dismissive eyes. “I just—I know you care about the kids. I do, too. Which is why I’m being honest. I never saw myself as a guardian of any type, and I want them to feel comfortable and safe while they’re here. They should be with someone that gives them some stability.”

She beckoned for you to follow her. You did. You walked past the beautiful garden full of flowers, their smell almost suffocating with their pungent odor. You felt a little sad when passing by them – they were a grim reminder of failures that stretched across time.

Your journey came to an end. You found yourself staring into the abyss, a long stretch of hallway with static that grated on your ears. It was the barrier, the one thing keeping you from going home, and the one thing that continued to trap the monsters here until the end of time. You hadn’t seen it up close yet, not like this, not with it roaring in the distance and sending the blood thrumming in your ears.

It was more than unnerving. It was fucking terrifying.

Toriel seemed to notice your apprehension, and she placed a gentle paw on your shoulder. “All we have is each other, my friend. The barrier will continue to exist as it always has. I would not give my people false hope about tearing it down, not as Asgore did. Instead, we can learn to coexist. The children falling down here are confused and hurt. They see monsters and believe we are set to hurt them. They were not wrong, once. I aim to change that. With your help. You are enough for them and enough for me. They need someone like them to help that understanding grow. They need to be nurtured, to be loved. Your helping hand is worth far more than mine, because you pave the way for everything else. I only hope that the weight of this does not overwhelm you. If there were any other way, I would gladly relieve you of this burden.”

You stared at the wall of magic. If you could reach through and stretch past the spell, you could return to your family and apologize for all the pain you caused them. There was no way for you to leave, not now, and maybe not ever. But she was right. It took you quite some time to adjust to life Underground, and the kids barely had a clue about what they’d gotten themselves into.

“I…I understand,” you muttered after a long pause. “I’m sorry, Toriel. I just—I know how much you care for them, and I don’t want to screw them up.”

She laughed, her voice soft. “You will do no such thing. You have a good SOUL. They will be able to see it. In the meantime, you know I will do everything in my power to make sure they are well taken care of.”

“Yeah. Okay.” You swallowed the lump in your throat, still not fully convinced.

If the Queen of Monsters believed in you, why couldn’t you?


	2. Break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alphys was always a good distraction.

Toriel had a lot of duties on her plate. It was a good thing she had previous experience in being the leader to so many monsters, but it honestly made you nervous thinking about how much pressure she was under. She had meetings scheduled all throughout the night – complaints about crowding, permits for housing, minor issues that needed to be addressed, water and food rationing.

During the day she busied herself as a teacher, the castle serving as a school for all of the monster and human kids around. You weren’t sure where she even found the energy to bake them goodies every morning to serve at lunch, or how she even had the patience to deal with the high-strung monsters who were still bitter about what happened years ago.

From what you’d heard, they really had misplaced their anger. Not that you could blame them.

“H-help!”

You stood up from your desk and rushed to the door, pulling it open just in time for the small monster to stumble in. She had stacks of books in her hands and looked like she would topple over if you breathed on her wrong. You immediately bent down and grabbed about half of what she was carrying, tearing the extra weight off her and revealing her sheepish face from underneath them all.

“Alphys, you should’ve texted me! I would’ve helped you bring those up.”

“It’s n-no problem! I got a little…um…distracted a-and I had to rush up here. I di-didn’t want to bother you.”

You felt a little guilty at that. You'd been daydreaming again while working on some documents. “Uh, you’re never bothering me. I love seeing you. Come on in, I’m sorry about the mess. The Queen had some visitors come in unexpectedly and she asked me to start on this shit before she let the kids out.”

“I-it’s fine, really! You should see my lab when I-I start watching a new series.”

You set the books down on the chair in front of your desk. “So, what’s new with you? I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever.”

“O-oh.” She let out a meek smile. “Just trying to…f-figure things out. About um…The Barrier. U-Undyne actually gave me some great ideas last night during our brainstorming session! I think that if we approach the p-problem from a more ethically sound stance, we can definitely come up with something we’ve never t-thought of before! I mean, b-before it was all about determination, but that required experiments and not very much direction, so things went badly. B-but Toriel is really good at keeping me in line s-so I don’t go too far, and it’s good, because more parameters means looking at the problem from different angles!”

She didn’t stutter nearly as much when she was this engaged with you. You listened to her intently while she rattled off several hypotheses, the majority of them having to deal with complex mechanics and chemistry of monster matter. She threw in a casual suggestion of using you as a point of reference for human anatomy, which you encouraged wholeheartedly. If she needed human experiments, you would be her girl. You were the only one old enough to consent, and you were a good prototype for the kids that deserved a second chance.

“Well I’m glad you’re taking up the role. If anyone can find another way around that thing, it’d be you.” You pretended not to notice how embarrassed and flustered you made her, not wanting to tease her with well-deserved praise. “So what are all these books?”

“O-oh! I borrowed these from King Asgore a long time ago. B-but that was for my other research.” Her expression turned sad. Wistful. “I think he w-would’ve wanted Toriel to have them back. At least f-for her collection.”

“I see.” You felt like an asshole for bringing it up. From what Undyne told you, the King was beloved by nearly everyone in the kingdom. He meant a great deal to the monsters and protected them the best he could. Toriel didn’t like to speak about him directly; she often told you that she wouldn’t be the same kind of ruler that he was. But you never got the full story about exactly what he did wrong, and Alphys seemed to have been close to him, so it wouldn’t have been right to ask.

“S-so what are you working on? I’m sorry I didn’t ask earlier.”

You beckoned her to have a seat, pouring a cup of tea for her. Toriel kept a kettle on at all times in your office, only because she popped in and out so frequently that it made sense. It was still piping hot once you set it in the cup, but Alphys was used to everything being at least a hundred degrees. She sipped at it politely and nestled herself into the chair, legs swinging over the edge as she stared at you curiously.

“Some monsters came in asking for a housing permit,” you explained. “They want to move to a bigger place in New Home because they want to expand their family. Normally I’m the one that just approves or declines based on whether the couple already has kids. It sucks, but we really can’t afford to stretch out our resources any more, so Her Majesty’s trying really hard to stick with a policy. Most monsters are okay with just one, right? Well, this couple had two kids – but one of them Fell Down and soon after, so did the other.

“So that just opens up a whole can of worms. Do we grant the request because things aren’t looking well for their other kids? If we do, there might be some angry monsters that throw it in our faces because we’re being lenient with this family and not theirs.

“I know that having a kid is a big fucking deal to monsters, it requires an insane amount of attention and love. And to tell them that they can’t do that, all because they already have a couple, is kind of fucked up. I don’t want the Queen to take the heat of being a dictator more than a ruler, especially since people are still pissed off about what happened to the King.”

You rubbed at your eyes, weary. “It definitely isn’t as fun as hanging out in your lab. I mean, I hate to be the bad guy. And the couple is really nice. Just monsters that want to move on with their lives and deal with the loss of their kids as best they can. But I also want to make sure that if they do this, it’s because they’re ready – that their grief isn’t going to get in the way of raising their new kids.”

Alphys looked uncomfortable. You couldn’t blame her.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to be a downer. It’s just one of many things I get to deal with as the Queen’s assistant. Uh, if you’d like, we could definitely talk about something else. Check this out, Monster Kid drew a picture of Undyne for you.”

You nearly forgot about the artwork shoved in your desk. MK admired Undyne once upon a time, as most of the little monsters did. There wasn’t much room for argument, either. She was brave, courageous, badass, a beacon of hope and a pillar of strength in the community. People felt safer with her around and she was so easy to like because of her massive personality.

You took the paper out and set it on the desk, far away enough from the kettle so it wouldn’t be ruined by the steam or tea spilling over the edge. “Here you go. I think they actually did one of Papyrus too, but I wasn’t gonna tell her that. So you can hang this up in your lab maybe, to keep you company when she’s not around.”

Alphys shot you a watery smile, looking absolutely touched. She grasped it with her claws and laughed. “Oh. T-that expression…it’s perfect. Is she…suplexing a boulder?”

“I think so. Totally accurate.” You loved how close the two of them had gotten in the past few years, it was worth it to watch their relationship blossom. You just wished that they would both take the plunge and confirm what they felt for each other. “I think they really enjoyed that demonstration you gave about monsters and humans last week. So they wanted to show their appreciation.”

“T-this is wonderful. I’ll have to find some way to make it up to the kids!”

“Honestly, if you could have Mettaton stop by, that would make their entire year. I know a lot of them are getting into his shows now that he’s expanded his audience.”

“R-right! I’ll text him and see if he can make time!”

You talked for about fifteen more minutes until your cell phone started to ring. You pulled it out of your pocket with an apologetic expression and checked the number.

“Sorry Aly, I have to take this.”

“I-it’s fine! I’m just going to check UnderNet.”

You clicked the call button. “Hello?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> undyne and alphys are my OTP. like i never thought i'd ship a fish and a lizard, but here we are.


	3. The Core

Science was definitely not your strong suit. Back when you were in school, you prided yourself in getting high marks in practically every class. But you weren’t creative enough or well-disciplined to pursue the hard sciences. It just made your head hurt after a while, all because it was so complex and required so much fucking memorization. Instead, you turned to other types of study. Subjects that related to the human experience rather than the makeup of the universe.

Still, you were often asked to drag your ass to The Core to deal with power problems.

Consistent.

Fucking.

Power problems.

Alphys did a great job in maintaining things that went awry for the most part. But even she was still in the dark about how The Core functioned on a daily basis. Sometimes the machinery blew out and you had to hire some contractors to repair them. Other days, people heard strange noises and were too afraid to enter the dangerous buildings in order to check it out.

Today was one of those days.

Several of the monsters who’d made their home here had just up and left. Not much help from them. They liked their privacy and a lot weren’t interested in meeting up with a human that was granted such a big title. You didn’t blame them, but you sort of wished that you had some company. You weren’t even a social person in the first place, but The Core was massive and intimidating, to say the least.

Monsters had rituals not so different from humans. They didn’t exactly believe in an afterlife, but they did sprinkle the dust of those who had passed on. You heard several of them say that the essence of who they were lived on in the object chosen to keep the ashes. It made sense. Magic and all of that. Still, you often wondered why no one seemed to like to linger near The Core.

The lower levels were often the darkest and dangerous. You’d heard that the human child, Frisk, had actually come down here on their own while they tried to reach New Home and face Asgore. You couldn’t imagine someone so small and young getting through the puzzles by themselves, but from what the others told you, they were determined. Well, they got their wish, you thought bitterly, pushing the down button in the elevator. They crossed the threshold and left everyone else by a thread.

You couldn’t exactly be angry with them. Kids were stupid sometimes. They were self-centered. Most didn’t think about consequences, even when it was directly related to them.

If the kid meant well, then they must not have succeeded because of something else interfering. From what you’d heard, Frisk was a gentle SOUL, taking care of monsters' problems. Charming people like Undyne and humoring Papyrus with the attention he so deserved. You weren’t sure what went wrong. Why they didn’t get rid of the one thing separating the monsters from the outside world.

The lights continued to flicker around you, the gentle hum of The Core a more ominous sound than a reassuring one. It was eerie down here. Harsh. Darkness seeped from the walls and would have choked anyone weak enough to succumb to its muted whispers.

Wait. Whispers?

A chill ran down your back, but you shook it off. You strained to hear anything against the backdrop. Nothing. Whatever it was, what you thought you heard, was gone. Good. You really didn’t need to add auditory hallucinations to your ever-growing list of issues. How did the local monsters even stand it down here?

You didn’t have a flashlight on you, but Alphys had attached one to your cell phone. You flicked the switch and the entire walkway lit up. Emergency lights were on, which meant that the generators were running on backup power. Why? Why did this have to happen now? Sometimes the wires popped out because of the constant vibrations of the machinery around, other times monsters tripped on them and were too embarrassed to admit it.

You navigated through the long stretch, footsteps echoing across the vast room. You concentrated with each inch you moved forward.

Check the main power pylon in each room. That was issue number one. They were switched off if they overheated. Maybe some of the monsters from Hotland wandered in and ended up spiking the temperature too much? The magic usually kept the machinery functioning despite being submerged in the magma, but it was delicate all the same. A few degrees warmer and the thing was on the fritz, which was an oversight that was supposed to be fixed soon.

“Ah, _fuck_. It’s fucking freezing in here.” You wanted to rub your forearms through your sweatshirt, but relented. You’d rather keep the flashlight shining on your surroundings than have a split second of minor comfort. Still, you pulled your sleeves over your hands and flicked your hood up.

What the hell was going on? It was like Snowdin all over again.

Ignoring the puffs of air that appeared with every exhale, you approached the tower. Sure enough, it’d been tripped. Great. Which meant you had to find the circuit breaker for this section and see if you could get it started again. But first you had to get the damn temperature in this grid normalized, which meant that you had to find the cause and nick it before it gave you any more trouble down the road.

Well. It might not have affected the others. If all of them were down, then there was only room that would’ve contributed to this.

You mustered up as much confidence as you could while you journeyed deeper. Fuck, even with the emergency lights it was still creepy in here. You weren’t a big believer in the occult, but the monster equivalent of funerals really did give you something to think about. They were made of magic. The rules of their existence didn’t obey the same laws that your kind were used to. You made serious technological advances by embracing science and denouncing anything supernatural or otherworldly. They did the opposite, well, more of a mix between the two. And it worked well enough for them. That or you were in one seriously fucked up coma and all of this was dreamed up by little ol’ you.

The walls eased in, pushing, grinding, tightening up as you strutted through with your shoulders back. Trying to intimidate you? You tried your hardest not to fall into pit of anthropomorphism, but holy fuck. It was all in your head, just the atmosphere and your nerves getting the best of you.

The Core wasn’t alive.

So why was your name lingering in the air like static?

You pushed the door open with a bang, as if that would scare off any intruders. The breaker was in the far corner of the room, shrouded in a cold mist that swirled and swept around your ankles. You could barely see anything, and the tip of your nose was already numb.

“What the fuck,” you muttered, flexing your fingers to keep them from falling off. “What the fuck is this?”

The ground was slick. With ice.

You weren’t qualified for this at all.

Monsters used magic to defend themselves. The kid, Frisk, had gotten through the Underground by defending themselves against onslaughts of attacks. You'd only been manhandled by a couple of monsters caught up in the moment, and those incidents were interrupted by someone else coming in to rescue you. This was different. If you were confronted by something sinister, alone in the dark, how the fuck were you going to survive?

Nah. You weren't.

You managed not to fall on your ass despite your sneakers not made for this kind of weather. You stood in front of the massive control panel and the switch that would hopefully solve all of your problems. But there was no use in trying to get it to work when the entire room was like this. Where was it coming from?

You saw the ice patch grow smaller off to your left. It was better than nothing. You planted both feet firm on the ground and took baby steps to follow it, tensing your thighs and calves so you could prepare yourself in case you fell. You came close more than a few times, but managed to steady yourself despite the growing bundle of nerves in the pit of your stomach.

You should’ve called for someone, but you didn’t. You didn’t want to rely on anyone else; you were just stubborn like that.

The edge of the ice was black. You stepped over it and found that the temperature shifted from unbearably cold to pleasantly humid. It was familiar. You reached up and dropped the hood from shielding your ears and neck from the bite of the cold.

There was a pinprick of light. Glowing so faintly against the mist that still blocked your view. You approached it with caution, fixing your gaze on it, gripping your cell phone tightly.

You didn’t say one word. Not to alert the thing, whatever it was. Not to rouse the thing that ate up all of the heat in the rest of the room like a glutton. The mysterious object that took every iota of warmth and hoarded it all to itself.

What was it? What the fuck was it?

Something flickered inside of you and you felt something pulled from the center of your chest. The unfamiliar sight jarred you to the point where the world turned upside down. Your stomach flipped and you sucked in a gasp, watching as your SOUL hovered in the air above. In all of its glory, the fluorescent purple struck against the background of the cyan walls, shimmering and popping with every breath you took.

You couldn’t FIGHT. No one ever taught you. You weren’t strong enough! You tried to keep your cool but the panic set in, eating away at your confidence, blurring your vision and sending you into a fit of shivers.

The thing sat up from its hunched position. You watched its gaze turn to you, slowly, rotating its entire body until you were seeing eye to eye. Laughter rang around you in waves, the sound of it grating against your ears, slicing through the mist and intensifying with every agonizing second that went by.

There wasn’t time to ACT. Not with your tongue tied and your brain about to be shredded into ribbons with that horrifying laugh echoing and bouncing across time and space. You gripped the phone tight enough that you heard the casing groan in protest.

MERCY.

FLEE.

FLEE!

Your legs were stuck to the ground. You weren’t going to make it. Whatever this was, it was going to kill you here and now. A quick blast at you and everything would shatter, leaving all that you were in pieces on the ground. You quivered at the thought of it, nonexistence triggering alarms in your head, sending sweat beading at your forehead and nausea at your throat.

_Ring. Ring._

You brought the receiver to your mouth.

“H-hello?”

You blinked.

Everything faded all so fast, the way that the mist around you cleared in a quick dispersion. Without warning, how the ice melted into water and the water evaporated so there wasn’t a damn trace of it, not even on the soles of your shoes. You scanned the room, drinking in every part you might have missed, taking your time, second by second, trying your damndest to find the source of the sudden turn of events, but there was nothing. You struggled to think about the voice on the other end and you couldn’t linger on that, no, not when it all faded like the hazy remnants of a nightmare, creeping back from where it came, the static no longer in your head and not even a gentle buzz against the low whir of generators around you and the magma bubbling several hundred feet below.

You swallowed. Sucked in a breath. Exhaled.

It was all back to normal.

You stood at the center of it, disoriented. Were you losing your damn mind? Had any of that actually happened? You no longer felt the strange twinge of concentrated warmth or the cold against your back. It was gone. All that remained were the emergency lights, blinking and shrouding the room in muted reds and oranges.

“Get yourself together.” You rubbed your eyes with your free hand, letting the phone drop to your side.

It didn’t make sense. Everything you’d seen had disappeared like it never even existed, and you…you weren’t sure if it had. Did you inhale something when you walked through? Noxious fumes that got you high enough to start seeing weird shit?

Ah. The phone! You put it back up to your ear, but there was no one on the other end. And when you thumbed through your call list, the only one in the past hour or so was the monster who filed the complaint in the first place. No, that had to be a mistake. You heard your ringtone slice through the silence and static, there was someone on the other end, you’d spoken to them and they were going to reply before you were jolted out of…whatever this was.

You hated this feeling. Not knowing what to make of things. You’d been made uncomfortable more times than you could count living Underground, as magic and monsters were two subjects you never believed in the first place before you fell down here. But this? This took the cake. You were still shaken up, your fingers twitching, your heartbeat thrumming in your ears.

“Fuck.” You headed back to the circuit breaker and checked the core temperature. Just where it needed to be. No more, no less.

With a hasty flip of the switch, the towers breathed to life, magic and electricity zipping through in tandem to bring order back to The Core. Everything settled into normalcy. Readings were fine. No sparks or strange noises. Nothing out of the ordinary that the rest of the monsters would complain about later.

You needed to get. The fuck. Out of here. NOW.

You didn’t run to the elevator. You wanted to, but you weren’t going to sit there and ACT like a child because of…whatever just happened. People asked you for help here because they thought you were brave. And you would take that with you to the grave. They trusted you to keep a level head about things, to be rational and not let your emotions get the better of you. It was…a big difference that separated human and monsterkind.

You punched the shit out of the button and felt a weight lifted from your shoulders as you ascended. Back to your office, the safe haven away from this, where you didn’t have to worry about the call of magic eating at everything you held dear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah i wouldn't want to be in the core alone either that place was fucking weird as hell


	4. The Wishing Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You help watch over the kids and reflect on everything.

****“This is the Wishing Room. Monsters travel from all corners of the Underground to look at these lights. They are the closest thing we have to the stars. Tell me, my children, why are wishes important?”

A flurry of hands raised in unison. Toriel beamed at their enthusiasm and called out to one of the kids, a bright and often overzealous student that adapted quite well to their new life.

“Wishes are important because they give people hope!”

“Very good. You get a gold star.” She plucked the sticker sheet from her satchel and handed a single one to the kid. They took it like a badge of honor and stuck it to their jacket. “What else?”

You watched from the corner of the room, arms crossed as you gazed above. It really was nice. You sort of forgot about minor things like this until you were torn away from it. You weren’t one for stargazing in your life above ground, not unless you needed to get away from things at home. You knew that the monsters wouldn’t be truly satisfied until they saw the sky for themselves, but from your perspective, their alternative was just as breathtaking. Maybe even more, considering how bright they were in the darkness, how the magic stones twinkled and beckoned passersby.

You swallowed the lump in your throat and stepped out of the room.

Toriel didn’t want the children to give up hope. It pained her when they spoke of returning to the surface, all because she knew that the chances were slim to none. She and Alphys spoke about the possibilities for hours, but there was no sure way that the kids could return in their lifetime. Monsters lived for much longer. Humans were delicate when it came to aging, their bodies not able to keep up with the strength and perseverance of their SOULs.

You didn’t like to think about it, either. How they all spoke vehemently about the things they would do when they went back to their parents. She poured all of her heart into raising them, mothering them, taking them under her wing to make sure they were loved and cared for. In return, they spoke words that sliced away at her good intentions and wounded her. And she always took it with a smile on her face and a gentle touch.

“hey there, pal. might just be the room, but you’re lookin’ kind of blue.”

You lifted your gaze from the echo flower and broke into a smile. “Color me impressed.”

“heh.”

You hadn’t noticed how you wandered out from the field trip, but you were nowhere near Snowdin. “Aren’t you a little far from your sentry? Why’re you all the way out here?”

“heard somethin’ interesting from a flower. decided to check it out.” He glanced off to the side. Eye contact was something that Sans maintained until he was putting thought into his words. Or making a pun. Which was…often a little bit of both, admittedly. “need a pick-me-up? i’ve got a dog with your name on it.”

“Seriously? You have them ready even though you’re not in Hotland right now?”

He shot you a furtive grin, which was a bit difficult to tell unless you hadn’t spent years learning to interpret his facial expressions. “a cool dog for a cool human.”

You shrugged. “I could eat. Unless you’re going to jack up the price again.”

“a guy’s gotta make a living.”

You didn’t bother asking him how he managed to find you in Waterfall. Amongst the fading glow of the mushrooms in the water, it was difficult to keep to the paths, let alone track someone down. But he had his share of secrets, and you weren’t ready to pry just yet.

“tori with you?”

“Yeah, she was with the class in the Wishing Room. Teaching them all about the history of the Underground. Really interesting stuff. Too bad I’ve heard the tale at least ten times now.” You laughed, thinking back to your days spent crammed in the library and jotting down notes. “It’s sad, you know? So I don’t really want to make it eleven.”

“i hear ya. monsters tend to fixate. must be nice to be human. fleeting interest an’ all that.”

You weren’t sure what he was getting at. You leaned against his sentry station turned hotdog stand, waiting for him to hand over the bun dressed to perfection with just what you liked. “Ooh, are we getting philosophical already? Here I thought I’d have to listen to more of your awful puns before I could get it out of you.”

“what can i say? they can’t all be… _wieners_.”

“Ugh! _Sans._ ”

You missed doing this. Waterfall had always been your go-to place, and you couldn’t even count how many times you’d walked along and had lunch with Sans to keep him company. The place didn’t get much traffic, and his job keeping watch for humans was often tedious and long.

“Anyway, to keep it going, I’m just gonna say this: humans don’t have as long of a time to obsess over certain things. We grow up fast and we die just as quick. So we learn to pursue what seems the most relevant and give up on things we think we’ve mastered already.” You took a bite and chewed thoughtfully, still a little disappointed it wasn’t actually made of meat. Which made sense, of course. “So. In other words, I’m totally ungrateful and self-centered.”

“hi, ungrateful and self-centered. i’m sans.”

“Pfft, no. You’re just the worst.”

His eyesockets crinkled and you groaned audibly at your own unintentional pun.

“How’s Papyrus doing in his new position?”

“real well. thanks again for talking tori into it. my bro liked the garden, but being head of the royal guard was always his Big Dream. since, y’know, monsters fixate.”

You never told Sans that you were the mind behind the promotion. “Uh, well, I’ve heard really good things. I haven’t seen him around as much, mostly because he’s got a lot of ground to cover and he has to instruct a lot of people working with him about proper protocol. But it definitely suits him. I’m glad he’s happy.”

You searched him for any shift in his expression. “How about you, Sans?”

He didn’t even falter. “what’s not to be happy about, bud?”

You finished the rest of your meal without answering his question. It really wasn’t the time to get into this, not when he was going to continue to evade a serious answer. All things considered, he was a pretty dodgy person and you knew more than anyone what that entailed. Sure, it bothered you, but you weren’t going to breach your trust just to satiate your own curiosity.

“Ah, there you are. We were wondering where you ran off to.” Toriel approached you with both hands folded over each other, looking downright tickled at the sight of you. “Hello, Sans! It is very good to see you again. I trust you two were not making trouble while I was away?”

“Us? Of course not,” you grinned. “I just got hungry so he was nice enough to feed me.”

“I’m hungry, too!” one of the kids piped. They clutched their stomach for emphasis. “Can we have hotdogs?”

“I want one!”

Toriel chuckled. “Now, now, my children. We have plenty of food back at our rendezvous point, do we not? I have baked several treats for you to enjoy if you finish all of your snail pie.”

They all seemed placated after that. Toriel shooed them away so they could get moving along the path, the leader she appointed barking orders at the rest of the group. She stared after them wistfully before returning her attention to Sans.

You always felt like you were intruding on their conversations, since they almost never got to see each other. Better to give them some space so they could at least catch up. You tossed some gold at Sans without a word and made a quick exit, not trusting the little demons to stay out of trouble on their own. As you walked further away you heard her laughter echo against the mostly empty landscape.

“We should play humans and monsters!”

“Don’t be dumb, the teams would be uneven!”

“So?”

You watched them, nervous out of your fucking mind. You hated this. Toriel was good with kids. You were better with paperwork and numbers. But she deserved to exchange a few bad puns with an old friend without the brats tugging on her dress every five seconds.

It didn’t help that you were feet away from the largest body of water in the Underground. Could any of them even swim?

“Are you going to play, too?”

You smiled awkwardly. “Uh…sure. What are we playing? No hide and seek though, there’s too much empty space and way too many of you to find before lunch.”

“Aw!”

“That’s okay. We’re going to play Royal Guards! Look, we’ll show you! Ebby! Go!”

Ebby was probably your least favorite of the brats, only because they were so damn arrogant…for a kid. You watched with feigned interest while he and Fram went head to head. It was…basically just a game of mimicking. Ebby would do something and Fram had to copy them down to the tee or else they were out. The person that led the actions was supposed to be Undyne, whereas the second player was Papyrus. Ah. So that made sense. They picked up on the duo’s friendship and how close they were, which was….totally adorable.

All of them were downright ecstatic when you joined in. Despite your halfhearted attempts to go along with their ridiculous demands, they ate it up. Still, despite your inner groveling, you were having a little bit of fun.

“Ha! Let’s see if you can do this, punk!” the kid across from you yelled. You were tickled at their impression that you nearly missed the crazy set of moves that they set up. The others ‘ooh’ed and ‘aah’ed at their complicated routine. You fixed your gaze on them and did your best to suck up any reservations you had, delving into it with gusto.

Hop hop hop. Stomp. Cha-cha. Stretch your arms out and bob them up and down in a silly little dance.

You spun around dramatically and stopped dead in your tracks when you saw both Toriel and Sans standing behind you. Their expressions said they’d seen everything. Sans in particular had the cheesiest, most shit-eating grin on his face, struggling not to let out a single noise. Toriel roared with laughter, which caused the rest of the kids to follow her example. It was infectious any other time, but right now, you were mortified.

“pal, this is definitely a _step up_ from the serious face you put on all the time. i like this side of you – you shouldn’t _dance_ around a bit of fun once in a while.”

Toriel hooted until the kids had tears streaming down their faces from going at it too hard.

You drew yourself up from your ridiculous stance and just knew that you were blushing. Whether they could see it in the dim lighting was one thing, but the heat creeping along your neck, ears and cheeks was a sure sign that this was not how you expected the day to go. You just made the biggest ass out of yourself, and you didn’t even have the option to storm off and brood like you would’ve if you’d been on the surface. You couldn’t lose your cool in front of the class and show them an example of an adult getting away with a tantrum, but you were this fucking close to crying. You felt the sting of tears in the corners of your eyes while everyone got it out of their system. A bigger person would be laughing along with them.

“You win! That was the best!”

“Yeah, you’re the Queen of Royal Guard!”

You weren’t really comforted by their words. With a bitter smile, you watched as Toriel shushed them and managed to get their attention back. They gathered around the massive basket she brought with her homemade pie. Honestly, you felt like that was the main reason why Sans came all this way. Her cooking was Underground Renowned™. You wanted so badly to join in, but you were still about to lose your shit, so you slipped away from the group as fast as you could.

You sat on the edge of the water, cross-legged and your entire weight draped onto your lap. Your hair hung over your eyes as you tried to stop the unwelcome feelings that bubbled in your stomach.

You were such a baby.

“c’mon, wasn’t that bad. tori and the kids loved it. you go up to mtt resort with that act, my comedy routine might be short lived.”

You didn’t bother gracing him with the sour look you had hidden away. “Sans. Please don’t.”

Despite your protests, he settled in next to you. “isn’t that bad. i thought humans were supposed to be fleeting, after all. you live short lives. no need to uh, fixate.”

You wanted so badly to deck him. “Not all humans are the same. Some of us can’t help but focus in on things. Especially ones that hurt us.”

His silence was deafening. You heard distant echo flowers speaking to each other over the marsh. Some of the mushrooms squeaked as monsters walked by, flicking them to light the path. A rush of water down the way, the thundering waterfall nothing but a distant hum from here.

“can’t let this get to you, bud. more important things to think about.”

“I know it’s stupid. You don’t know how it feels, to agonize over things that don’t even fucking matter.” You couldn’t stop yourself now. Oh, fuck. “Ever since I was a kid. Just…focus on things that make you feel like shit and nothing else. A hundred good things could happen and all it takes is one bad experience to color my world for the rest of my life. I’ll never forget.”

“heh.” He shifted his weight and you heard him plant both hands into the soft earth next to you. “y’know…we’ve got some things in common. monsters an’ humans, i mean.” He paused. You waited for him to continue, but it seemed like that was the end of his spiel. “waterfall, huh. i remember once upon a time you told me this was your favorite spot. still ring true, or is this gonna change things for ya?”

You thought about it. Rolling the words on your tongue. He’d been paying attention after all. “I don’t think it will. Too many good memories here.”

“yeah. i think so, too.” He pulled himself up from his position and clapped his shorts to get rid of any stray mud and dirt. “welp. we should get goin’. wouldn’t want to miss out on the pie.”

He was right. Toriel put a lot of love into her creations, and it always brought such a delighted smile to her face when you delved in and devoured it all. She deserved to know that she still had it.

“Alright, alright.” You swept your hair back over your head and straightened it out, running your fingers through the tangles. You rubbed your eyes with the heel of your palm, trying not to show any evidence of your frustrated tears. If anyone asked why they were red, you guessed you could just tell them that you were tired. No one would question that.

“good. guess this means i…got you to come out of your _shell_?” He winked.

“Zero out of ten.”

“c’mon, i hit the _snail_ on the head with that one.”

“Negative three.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel like a lot of people don't realize how reserved sans is. not only that, but how nonchalant he acts because he's aware of multiple timelines.


	5. Interruption

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You get a work call on your day off. Figures.

****“NYEH HEH HEH! NICE TRY, UNDYNE!”

“Just watch me, punk! I’ll tear that smile right off your face! NGAAAAH!”

Despite the anime blasting at full volume, you could _still_ hear the two of them outside the window. It was nice to have a day off to spend with friends, but holy fuck. You almost forgot how loud they were when they were together.

Alphys didn’t seem to mind. She continued to slurp up her bowl of ramen with her eyes transfixed on the screen.

Truth be told, it wasn’t really your thing. You weren’t into shojo all that much, but Alphys was enamored. She scrounged it up from the dump a few weeks ago and it was all she could watch. She claimed that by now she was just trying to memorize the minor details and re-experience it, but you knew that she was hooked. She and Undyne had gone through the entire thing together but she she just HAD to show you. You were grateful she thought of you, but you couldn’t take any more of the sappy romance.

“This is it!” she squealed, leaning forward so far that her soup nearly spilled out. You caught it before she could dump it all over her lap. She didn’t even flinch. “Where Miku decides if she wants to partner up with Haru or Takashi to cook okonomiyaki for the school festival! SHH!”

You flicked your gaze back to the screen. Honestly, you enjoyed her reaction more than the show itself. Next time she went dumpster diving you were going with. You would find some kind of fighting anime and manage to persuade her over to the dark side. Undyne would pretend to approve of your choice, but that dork was just as excited by this mushy stuff as her best friend was.

The scene with Miku’s decision was promptly interrupted by a burst of shards scattering in front of the TV.

“N-no!” Alphys squeaked, scrambling for the remote. She was trying to rewind it! She wasn’t even concerned about the debris!

You jumped up from your spot on the couch and dropped down to where Papyrus landed. He hadn’t been harmed by his impromptu entrance, but it still scared the shit out of you.

“Papyrus! Are you okay?!”

“THIS IS FOR THE GOOD OF MY TRAINING!” he bellowed. “EXCELLENT FORM, UNDYNE! NOW WE SHALL SEE IF YOU CAN HANDLE…MY NEXT ATTACK!”

Without any warning, he somersaulted through the air and went out the same way he came in. You squinted at the new Papyrus-shaped hole in the window. Well, it _was_ pretty impressive.

Alphys didn’t seem to mind the draft from outside, as she was stammering out an apology for not pausing it sooner.

You weren’t sure whether to laugh or cry at this point, seeing as how you knew you would somehow be the one putting effort into cleaning up the mess, so you went with faux ignorance instead. Just pretend that there wasn’t a sea of glass ready to shred your feet to ribbons, yeah.

You settled back in and felt your jaw tighten. “Miku _really_ picked Haru? Why?!” So much for not being interested. It was hard to contain yourself once you caught sight of your lovable, ditzy heroine making a complete mess out of herself in front of one of her objects of affection.

“W-what do you mean? They’re p-perfect for each other!” Alphys argued, looking stunned at your outburst. “H-he’s amazing at sports and c-cares so much about his little brother! Family is important to Miku because sh-she was given up for adoption as a child! P-plus, he’s so popular and it would r-really boost her confidence if she were to get together with him!”

You scoffed. “He’s also an asshole. If she wanted to be happy, she’d stick with Takashi. He might be a dope, but at least he’s honest about things. The two of them would have good chemistry if she wasn’t so busy being starry-eyed over some jerk who thinks he’s better than everyone else at the school. Doting on his little brother and ignoring everyone else doesn’t mean anything. And besides, Takashi has like, five brothers and sisters that he watches over without complaint! Miku’s practically part of his family already!”

“No, you don’t understand! That’s why they can’t be together! They’re already so close, like siblings, so it wouldn’t make sense that all of a sudden there’s romantic interest! If they were to get together it would have happened, and not because they were forced by some kind of school festival!!!”

“You ask me? I think Miku and Hana should get together. There’s so much chemistry between them since she moved to the school, and it’s obvious that Hana has a thing for her. Like, they even got an A+ on their science lab together, even though it’s Miku’s worst subject. Remember they almost kissed when they both fell down after almost being run over by the basketball team at gym class?”

“Wh…” Alphys pupils dilated. “Y-you’re…a genius.”

She pulled out her phone and immediately began to post about her new OTP. You were happy to help. Maybe the two of you could rewrite this anime and give it the lesbian couple it truly deserved.

“Hey nerds, what’re you up to?”

You stretched your legs out and leaned back on the couch. “Just watching the new stuff Alphys picked up. You guys done already?”

“Fufufu. You shoulda seen the way we duked it out! Papyrus is getting pretty good, might just beat me…in a few hundred years!”

She guffawed and doused herself with the water bottle in her hand, not bothering to think about how the fuck. That was going to affect. The glass on the floor. Come to think of it, how was she even walking on top of that shit?

“You hear that, punk?! You’ve got a long way to go if you wanna be at my level! Royal Guard or not, you’re just a pipsqueak! So get back to training!!!”

You heard him shout something outside the window, but between the sound of your internal screams and the high-pitched, bubbly music on the TV, there was no way you could make it out.

In the midst of all the chaos, you almost missed your phone ringing.

“Shit!”

You jumped up and almost landed smack dab on the glass, only to have Undyne catch you in midair. The force she used to stop you from going down hard was enough to knock the breath out of you. You blinked in confusion as you hung in her grasp, her powerful arms lifting you high enough so she could clear the room without knocking your head on any of the furniture.

She set you down and grinned, hair and scales still sopping wet. “C’mon, nerdling! You gotta be more careful!”

You nearly laughed at her nickname for you, but you remembered why you nearly tore yourself up in the first place. It was a call from the Royal Guard HQ. Important stuff. This was your job. You panicked at the sight of the name on the caller ID and brought the receiver to your ear.

“Reporting.”

“We’ve got a scuffle near The Core. Looks like it might get ugly.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck. You glanced over at Papyrus, who wasn’t winded at all despite his training with Undyne not moments ago. “Paps…Papyrus is with me. We’ll head down and see what’s going on.”

“Roger that. Gives us a call once the situation’s sorted.”

You told the skelebro the news and his eyes lit up. He always relished a chance for him to showcase his skills. He took down the road without thinking twice, heading toward the coordinates you rattled off when going through your panicked explanation. It didn’t even occur to you that he wouldn’t wait, so you barely had time to say your goodbyes to the two behind you when you kicked it into high gear.

“Go get ‘em, punk!!! And make sure Papyrus doesn’t get hurt or I’ll END YOU!”

Undyne’s vague threats were her way of showing affection. You just really wished that they weren’t aimed at you ninety percent of the time. You were the fragile human here, the one without any kind of fancy combat training!

Hotland wasn’t exactly easy for running. The only reason why Undyne even bothered to swing by Alphys’ place was because she’d installed a pool for her to jump into when she got overheated. With plenty of water on tap and a climate controlled training yard, it just made sense that she wouldn’t get too uncomfortable.

But out here? In the sweltering heat, with the lava licking the rocks down below? Where actual flame monsters originated from and no Nice Cream vendor to be found? You were in hell. You couldn’t take this, not without a breeze to dry the beads of sweat on your forehead and placate your exhaustion. You were used to a humid climate, not an arid one. There was totally a difference.

Papyrus was already out of sight. You couldn’t even locate his footsteps in the cracked earth because he was bounding ahead of you. You wished that his enthusiasm had a cap, just a small one, so you could make sure that he didn’t go headfirst into situations like this. There were too many unknowns. If it was a barroom fight that included a couple of regulars, then he could definitely handle it on his own. If HQ hit you up, it was because they had a feeling that the source of the trouble was—

You stopped to catch you breath, winded already. You never prided yourself in much physical activities, anyway. Running was one of them. Your chest seared with pain and the sharp burn brought the faint taste of copper to your lips. It didn’t help that your mouth was dry, so when you went to lick your chapping lips, you only rubbed against the raw skin and made it worse.

You pushed your fingers through your quickly dampening hair. Okay. Tie it up, get it out of the way. You sucked in a breath and grabbed the scrunchie from your wrist, wrapping everything up in a neat ponytail. Better. You were sure that you looked ridiculous with the flyaway strands and the sheen of sweat running down your neck and nose, but you couldn’t exactly spend too much time lamenting on your appearance.

Monsters parted when you pushed your way through, an apology on your throat but not being quick enough to voice it. You didn’t have to move any of them out of the way, as they sensed your presence on the horizon and could tell that the matter was urgent. Several of them uttered out quick greetings, but you were in such a rush that you couldn’t bother to return the gesture.

Your feet pounded against the ground as you forced yourself forward. A little more. The locator on your phone beeped with alarm as you closed in on the destination.

Almost there.

Almost.

There!

You came up over the hill and drank in the sight.

A lone vulkin stood in the middle of the path. Fear across its entire face, no longer the carefree, warm expression that you’d only ever seen when speaking with their kind. No lovey-dovey reaction to being cuddled and definitely no desire to be anywhere near the thing that was causing it so much discomfort.

In front of it, trying to pound at it with all of its might, was the one thing you’d been dreading to see.

“HALT!” Papyrus shouted, readying himself. He was going to draw their SOUL and use his blue attack. Get them to give up with the added weight to their limbs. “I, THE GREAT AND ROYAL GUARD PAPYRUS, WILL NOT ALLOW THIS! I AM GIVING YOU FAIR WARNING, SO PLEASE STOP BEFORE YOU ARE HURT!!!”

Kids were…a big fucking pain in the ass.

You’d resigned yourself up until this point that you would never have them. They were loud, obnoxious, rude, needy, weird, and just…not for you. It took special kind of people to be able to connect with them. You weren’t one of ‘em. You couldn’t see yourself raising anything but a dog or a cat, let alone another human being.

Which was why you hated this part of your job. You were a glorified babysitter, and your charge was currently going apeshit because they were disoriented and terrified.

Papyrus gave them a chance. He always did. But the kid wasn’t having it.

One look at this seven-foot-tall skeleton with glowing bones in his hands and they flipped. They screamed and launched themselves at him with all of their might. He took the full blow of their assault and skidded backwards. Their fists and heart were filled with malice. With destruction. With the desire to watch him die, to push him over the edge of the cliff and into the lava below.

He hadn’t been expecting it. Not with that Level Of ViolencE. He wasn’t scared. There was no fear in his kind eyes as he forced a smile through the discomfort. But you knew better.

You watched his SOUL tremble.

Something inside of you snapped. Papyrus was on the ground. He had his hands clenched around his weapon of choice, something that he would use to trap them and keep them immobile. It was to make sure that they couldn’t reach him and cause more havoc.

But you weren’t going to risk it. No one had gone through an experience with a…bad human. Frisk was remembered as someone gentle and helpful, eccentric and fun. They never harmed anyone. And this kid? They came into the Underground swinging. Ready to strike and lash out against anyone and anything.

You weren’t sure why you did it. You just did.

Despite your gut telling you that Papyrus was a big boy and could handle himself in a fight, you forced your aching legs to propel you in harm’s way. You ran in front of the skeleton before you could even think twice. You sucked in a breath and prepared for impact.

Monster SOULs were more delicate than you gave them credit for. The kids in Toriel’s class learned that the hard way when their curiosity got the better of them and some instances of roughhousing caused major injuries. They couldn’t withstand the brunt of physical attacks when they were filled with malice. For you, you might gain a bruised stomach or a sore arm. For them? Being caught off guard, not used to such extreme measures, they could have fucking died.

The kid fucking _punched_ you.

You weren’t exactly a wimp. A squirt like that couldn’t have broken anything major. But the fact that they put their full body weight of about fifty pounds into their charge, and sank their knuckles into you, was enough for you to suck in a pained breath and hear your own heartbeat pounding in your ears.

Papyrus screeched your name and you glanced down. They were glowing. They were using _magic._ This wasn’t just any old kid that was beating at you with tiny little fists filled with equal amounts of tiny rage. They’d somehow channeled that shit and attacked you with everything they had.

Which explained why you went flying.

You rolled along the ground, your shoulders striking against the uneven surface as you went. The colors and shapes of Hotland sprinted across your vision as you continued to head down the path, grunting out in pain when you slowed to a stop. You could feel your legs dangling over the edge of the cliff and the heat crept up your ankles. Holy fuck. You were so close. You could hear the magma bubbling down below and your palms began to sweat, your grip faltering. This was it. You were gonna die here. You were gonna let go, because you had zero upper body strength to haul yourself up all the way, and you were going to fall to your death.

You clung as hard as you could. You weren’t going to last much longer. And all because you didn’t trust Papyrus to do his job. Tears stung at your eyes and you pushed them back, the lump in your throat growing as you shoved away all thoughts of having it end here. This couldn’t be it.

A tiny hand grabbed at your wrist. Strong fingers wrapped around and gripped you tight. They tugged and pulled with tears streaming down their face, having popped over the edge just to stare down at you. Not a very pretty sight for someone who was about to die – snot running down their nose, cheeks stained red from crying, blubbering so hard that they could barely see.

Why was this kid trying to help you up? Why did they look so fucking scared?

In the midst of your self-pity you hadn’t even noticed Papyrus make his way back. He gently moved the child out of the way before grabbing your arms. He lifted you from your spot without flinching. You were always surprised at how effortlessly he picked up things that were at least a thousand times his weight. He brought you in close, away from the certain death down below, and set you down on the ground.

Monsters all around cheered him on and thanked him. Whoops of glee and congratulations for him being the hero. You felt your fear ebb away and in its place came the ultimate form of embarrassment. At least Papyrus relished the attention, glowing with happiness as several of the residents came up to him to express their gratitude in full.

“Okay?” The vulkin asked you, looking downright miserable.

You gave them a watery smile and did your best to comfort them with a very reluctant hug. Affection in general made you squirm. Well, maybe that and the searing heat of them against your clothes.

“I’m fine. They didn’t hurt you, did they?”

You didn’t receive an answer. When you glanced over at Papyrus, he had a very forced, stern look on his face. The human child approached you with their head down, staring at their feet, stumbling forward with very precise and deliberate steps.

Without a single word, they came up to your waist, wrapped their arms around you, and embraced you tightly.

You couldn’t believe it. You glanced down at their figure and could hear their muffled cries buried in your jeans. Tears stained your clothing. They gripped and scabbed at your t-shirt with tight fists, pulling at the fabric and straining it just so that they could soothe themselves.

You stared at Papyrus with your deer-in-the-headlights look. He returned it, though his smile still shone through all of the nervous sweating.

What the fuck were you going to tell Toriel?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> can you imagine all of the shitty 90s anime alphys would be into tho
> 
> -watches 90s anime almost exclusively- haha so lame right


	6. Locked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You introduce the new kid to the benign ruler.

****You stood outside of the main doors, feeling the little urchin grabbing at your shirt to hold you close. They hadn’t pulled off since they latched on in the first place, and you were getting more than a little annoyed at how difficult it was to walk. Papyrus suggested that he carry them to New Home for Toriel’s portion of things, but the kid wouldn’t let him anywhere near them. They would just start screaming if he got within touching distance and dug their fingers into you like hooks.

This was turning out to be the worst day off you ever had. And that was saying something, as you remembered one time Sans made you watch over his hotdog stand while he took a convenient “break” during the afternoon rush. Eugh. You would never forget the smell of burning fries and the stern talking to that some of the monsters gave you when you nearly put your hand in boiling water.

At least he made it up to you by getting you a free meal at MTT Resort.

“HERE WE ARE, YOUNG HUMAN. THE QUEEN’S THRONE ROOM! YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE AFRAID, BECAUSE SHE IS VERY NICE! WEIRD, BUT NICE!!!”

A compliment from Papyrus was what you strove for in life. Maybe someday. You smiled at him thinly and both Guard 01 and 02 stood shock still in front of the doors.

“AT EASE, FRIENDS!” Papyrus called out. “IT IS ONLY I, THE GREAT…ROYAL GUARD PAPYRUS! THE QUEEN IS EXPECTING US!”

You would never get tired of him using his new title, even if the rest of the Underground did. Both of them moved from their position and the door opened. Papyrus made sure to lead you past the curious subjects who craned their necks to see what was going on.

Toriel refused to go anywhere near her throne. In reality, the weight of the crown was something she still wished she had the ability to reject. Meeting here was just a formality. So she waited in front of the regal seats that she and her husband once occupied, her hands clasped in front of her and concern written all over.

“A new face indeed,” she murmured, eyebrows knitting together. Residents were bittersweet for her. She loved the opportunity to bridge relations with new company, but loathed the fact that yet another child had wandered too far and gotten lost from their family. “Thank you, Papyrus. I will take it from here.”

“Thanks for all your hard work, Paps. I’ll see you later.”

He let out a “nyeh heh heh” before exiting the room, ushering everyone else out as well.

Now it was just the three of you. You, Toriel, and the kid that nearly threw you into a pit of lava.

“Greetings, my child,” Toriel spoke softly. “Are you hurt?”

The kid clutched you tighter. You shot her an apologetic look, but she wasn’t too interested in reading you. She got down to one knee in front of them and kept a safe enough distance so that they didn’t feel too threatened.

“You must be very tired and very confused. It is quite a long fall from Aboveground, I think.” She sighed. “I see you’ve met my friend. She is human, too. She helps me find other humans like you and make sure they are not hungry, cold, sad or sleepy. May I please know your name?”

No response. They didn’t budge at all. You found it a little more than annoying, honestly, mostly because they had no idea how patient she was being with them.

“Perhaps it would be best if you try,” Toriel told you. “They seem quite fond of you.”

You didn’t think it would help. But you managed to squeeze your way out of their clinging form and mirrored her movements, heading down to one knee so you could gaze at their face. Their nose and cheeks were red from crying, hair matted against their forehead and tears still in their eyes.

You introduced yourself quickly. “Who’re you?”

They drew you in close and whispered it in your ear like it was the biggest secret they knew. You furrowed your brows when they were done with their one-word answer, instead placing their chin in the crook of your neck and wrapping their arms around you. They seriously wanted you to carry them?

You struggled to pick them up and nearly toppled over. Toriel was ready to pitch in if you needed it, but she let you get back on your feet before asking.

“Says his name’s Locques. Uh, nice to meet you, Locques. This is Toriel. You might not be able to see her like that, but she’s the most beautiful monster in all of Underground. And she’s not going to hurt you. I give you my word on that.”

Toriel seemed flustered at your comment, but broke into soft laughter regardless. “Come this way, you two. We will find a place for you to rest and eat.”

Children scattered from the hallways once they saw Toriel’s stern look. They peeked from their doorways and whispered amongst themselves, no doubt already forming new scenarios in their heads about who the kid was and where they came from. The human children looked intrigued, while the monsters were more than excited. You didn’t have the heart to tell them that the little guy currently hanging from your neck wasn’t in any condition to play right now.

She must have put a pie in the oven as soon as she received Papyrus’ call. There was a steaming slice of it on a plate, neatly arranged with a tall glass of juice and the silverware polished to a gleam. You stopped at the head of the table as she pulled out the chair, ushering you to set him down.

His muffled protests didn’t go lost on her. You untangled his fists from your ponytail and tried to put him down as delicately as you could. He wasn’t having it.

“Locques, please. I’m right here,” you muttered, exasperated. “You don’t have to eat it all, but you need something in your stomach. I heard it growling all the way here.”

“I will get you a slice and you two can enjoy them together.”

Toriel rushed over to the rest of it sitting on the counter and carved you up one. You weren’t really starving, but you knew that the kid was going to hold out until he saw you take a bite of it yourself. That was what she was getting at.

“Thanks.” You pulled out the chair closest to the one she’d prepared for him. “You know, Toriel’s baking skills are awesome. Like, the best in the Underground. She’s talented at a lot of things. But this pie is her famous recipe. I promise you’ll like it. If you don’t, then we can snack on something else.”

You pressed your fork into the baked goods, the smell of it making your mouth water. Locques sat at the table and you hadn’t noticed it, but he’d actually lifted his head so you were making eye contact. He watched you with all sorts of suspicion written across his face.

Pointedly staring, you took a big bite of pie, chewed, swallowed, and went back for more.

Toriel busied herself with something in the background. Anything to make it look like she wasn’t monitoring him. You had no idea what she was doing, but the awkward silence of nothing but clinking dishes was going to drive you out of your mind. Especially when Locques refused to touch what was on his plate, fingers not even twitching in the direction of his fork.

“Underground’s a really cool place to live. I fell down here about…three years ago? I think. Time flies when you have good friends to keep you company.” Okay, so maybe you were hungrier than you thought you were. You were destroying your piece. “I’m not sure how you found your way down here. It can be really scary at first. But we’ll make sure nothing happens to you. I promise.”

Locques glanced down at the pie. He wanted so badly to take a bite, You could see the internal struggle. You decided to pretend you didn’t.

“That skeleton we met? That’s Papyrus. He’s head of the Royal Guard. His job is to make sure that humans and monsters are safe. He goes around Underground and makes sure that humans who do fall don’t end up hurting themselves. He’s really nice. A lot of kids like his cape, because he looks a little bit like a superhero.”

Fingers drummed on the table. You were getting closer.

“And Vulkin! Vulkin are harmless. The one you met just wanted to make sure you were okay. They’re really warm and really like hugs. They live mostly in Hotland though, which is a little ways from where we are. I know it might seem big to you, since you just got here, but you get used to it.”

He gripped the fork. Twirled it in his grasp. Touched it against the edge of the plate.

“I don’t know how you got down here. You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to. But part of my job is to make sure that you’re happy. I live here in the castle. I’m here a lot. So if you ever need anything, or want to talk, then all you have to do is come find me.”

His lips wrapped around the pie and the tears finally dried.

Success.

After Locques finished his meal, leaving absolutely no crumbs on the plate, he gazed at you sleepily. You knew that you weren’t going to get much out of him in this state, and it was getting late. Toriel had washed your dishes and she nodded toward the door so you could start the journey down to the bedrooms she reserved specifically for all of her adopted children.

Locques didn’t protest when you bent down to scoop him up. He nestled into you without a sound.

You wanted to say something to her. You wanted to tell her that you needed to leave. But you knew that this was why she trusted you. This kid was the epitome of why she hired you as her right hand woman. She knew that you weren’t a monster and that kids who were scared out of their minds were going to cling to you when they had nothing else familiar to latch onto in this topsy-turvy world.

The walk seemed longer, too. Maybe it was because it was already bedtime for the rest of the kids. No distant giggles or the pitter patter of feet that normally accompanied the halls. Just a few spare guards patrolling and giving you bows as you walked past. Toriel’s deafening silence added just a few more minutes to your journey. You weren’t used to it. When you were together you were always chatting about one thing or another, mostly work, but sometimes exchanging stories about your past. You respected her a great deal.

The room was empty. Most of the kids slept in pairs, but you would see about moving Locques once you got a feel of his personality. No reason to shove him with a stranger and expect him to blossom, especially not with how withdrawn he was already. Everything had been washed and primped, the small nightlight glowing brightly in the corner of the room, with various toys stacked in the corner of the room.

You sat down on the edge of the bed and sank in. Huh. Softer than yours. When you tried to pull his arms from around you, he wouldn’t let go. Toriel was all too amused with the situation as you pried him off you for the umpteenth time that night.

As soon as his head hit the pillow, you knew he was out. For how long was anyone’s guess. His soft snores echoed as his labored breathing evened out.

You left him in bed after Toriel tucked him in tight. She lingered at his face for a moment, paws nearly touching his brow, before she pulled away and headed straight for the door.

As soon as it clicked behind you, you rubbed at your eyes and stifled a long groan.

“Thank you,” she murmured. “I could not have done it without you.”

“Kid’s picky, yeah.” You couldn’t take her pensive expression any longer. “So? What do you think?”

“His fear of monsters is intense. The worst we have seen…” She trailed off. “I wonder, perhaps, if it is merely because of stories he heard before he fell. You have said that monsters are often the subject of nightmares and terrible stories. I hope he will grow accustomed to things here.”

“I’m sure he will. Remember Vita? She was totally out of her mind once she realized monsters were real, but now she and Daury are best friends.”

“Yes. I suppose.” She didn’t look convinced. “It is good you went with Papyrus. I am not sure what would have happened if…”

You thought about the magic that he’d used, the intense, burning, searing pain. You wondered if it left a mark. “About that. I think we have a lot to talk about. Not tonight, since I’m sure you’ve got about a million other things you need to take care of before you head off to bed. But I saw something in Hotland that didn’t make very much sense, and I think I need to do some research of my own.”

“Yes. Of course.” The two of you headed back the way you came. “I would ask that you keep your phone on tonight. I have a feeling our new resident will be needing you in the morning.”

“Yeah, sure. I understand.” You bit your tongue. You could think of a million things to say about how it wasn’t fair, how you didn’t want this responsibility, etcetera. But you weren’t going to put that on her. Not like that. “Just call me if things get bad. I’ll stop by tomorrow anyway and see how he’s adjusting. I think I’m going to have to pull all the stops if I want this kid to trust me.”

“I agree.”

You ended up in front of her quarters. You could already sense that she was going to retire and stew. You really wished that she wouldn’t carry those heavy thoughts alone.

“I am sorry your day off was not as you expected.”

“Toriel, you know that’s not your fault. We couldn’t have known we’d have someone drop in today.”

You were about to continue when you saw her focused expression break. She was laughing.

“Oh my god, did I just make another accidental pun?”

Her response was enough to bring a grin to your face. Despite everything that happened, she was still able to take pleasure in something so lame. What a dork.

“I am going to text it to Sans right now!” She exclaimed, pulling out her phone. “Which emoticon should I use to express my laughter? Or should I simply use LOL?”

You couldn’t believe she just said that out loud. Wait a second. “Oh fuck. _Fuck!_ ”

“I do not think that is an appropriate response,” she frowned.

“Sorry, Toriel! I just remembered something! I’ve gotta go!” You dashed down the hallway, not caring how much of a mess you looked as you went past the kids’ rooms. “Goodnight!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> watch ppl get mad bc i'm clogging up the tag
> 
> or continue not to care bc this is gen 4 now


	7. Stood Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How were you going to make this up to him?

****MTT Resort was still open, thank fuck for that. You slipped in and went past the greeter without even sparing him a glance. You thought he understood that you weren’t going to take a seat and start ordering any time soon, not with the way you looked. It was a good thing that there wasn’t exactly a strict dress code for this place, otherwise you would’ve been kicked out immediately.

You scanned the stage. It was empty. The mic was turned off, there was one lone monster finishing their meal off in the corner, and the cleaning crew already came in with their supplies. You stared at the scene for a moment, your stomach in knots.

Something tapped your right shoulder and you whipped around to see who it was…only to be greeted with blank space. You turned the other way and caught sight of the grinning skeleton, who looked downright tickled that you’d fallen for one of his lame pranks.

“Sans,” you breathed. “I’m such an asshole.”

“wow. here i’ve been calling you the wrong name all this time and you never bothered to tell me.”

“I honestly didn’t mean to. I should’ve texted you and said I couldn’t make it. God, I fucked up big time.”

“all you had to do was tell me you were thinkin’ of starting your own career as a comedian. then i would’ve caught the hint that you were good at _stand up_.”

You groaned long and loud, getting more miserable by the second. “It’s not like that! I got called into work last minute and there was this kid that couldn’t get away from me, he had to be within six inches of me or he would start screaming, and then I had to make sure they were in bed without…” You squinted at him. “Are you…brushing this off?”

“don’t sweat it. it’s fine. my bro told me all about how he saved your life. thanks for sticking your neck out for him, though. he kept going on about how heroic you were.”

He glanced off to the side. That was it. The gesture you’d been dreading.

“Sans, listen to me. Let me explain.” You sucked in a long breath. “Basically, I got a call of a fight down in Hotland. Papyrus and I went to check it out, and there was a kid.”

“another kid, huh?”

“Yeah. So, this kid wasn’t cowering like all of the other ones did. They were fighting against one of the monsters. Papyrus tried to warn them, to step in and give them a chance, but they just attacked him without even thinking. He fell to the ground and I just…” You swallowed thickly. “I wasn’t thinking. I stepped in-between them because I was afraid he was going to get hurt. You know he would never seriously injure one of the children, even in his own self-defense. So I just…I took the brunt of the attack and the fucking kid knocked me close to the edge. Thankfully Papyrus was there to haul me up. If it weren’t for him, I would’ve died.”

You thought about how horrible it was for the monster bystanders, who were in such shock that none of them could move. Not with that little asshole still swinging his fists around.

“I had to bring them to Toriel once they calmed down, and then I had to stick around to get them to head off to bed. They just clung to me like Jerry.” You made a face. “So, yeah. That’s where I was for the past four hours. I’m so sorry, I really didn’t mean to miss your show.”

“don’t worry about it, bud. you were busy. it happens.” He winked.

“No. You’re not doing that with me and expecting to get away with it.” You shifted your weight to angle your hips forward, crossing your arms to gaze at him sternly. “This was important to you. You talked about the new show for weeks. When Toriel said she couldn’t go, I said I would be there. You were excited for it, Sans. So don’t brush it off like it’s nothing.”

“eh, bigger things to worry about.”

“Don’t.” You shook your head and blocked him so he couldn’t stare through you. “It doesn’t hurt to care about things, you know. I disappointed you. I should’ve been here and I wasn’t. We can’t go back and change things, but it’s worse if we pretend that it never happened.”

“is it?”

You weren’t sure what he meant by that. “What I’m saying is…you’re allowed to be angry or upset with me. You’re allowed to take pride in the things you do. The show was a big deal.”

“i appreciate the thought. but there’s always more shows.” His smile didn’t look very genuine. “listen, it’s been a long night. i’m sure we’re both… _bone tired_. how ‘bout we just postpone this until… _tomarrow_.”

Your heart sank. You wanted to get some sort of reaction out of him, but he was acting more nonchalant than ever. “Yeah. Sure.”

“cool. thanks again for helping my brother. he did have a good time today.” You headed toward the exit together, his steps short and gait drawn out to make the journey twice as long. “and anyway, undyne texted me earlier. said you were… _caught up_ in somethin’. thought to myself, whoa, that sounds _fishy_. but then my bro filled in the rest and it really _sank in_.”

“Alright. Well…I’m sorry, again. I’m sure you were hilarious. I just wish I could’ve seen it. Next time you perform, let me know. I’ll do my best to make it, okay? Even if it’s a routine I’ve seen a thousand times. I’ll still laugh like it’s the first time I’ve heard it.”

“heh.”

You snuck another glance at him and frowned. He was good at feigning emotions. But you weren’t going to sit here and let him get away with this.

“well, pal, this is my stop. i’m gonna take the shortcut home.” He held out a hand. “thanks for the pep talk.”

You hesitated. Touching! Always touching!!! You stuffed down your doubts and accepted his offer for a friendly, goodbye handshake.

Only to receive a large jolt that snaked throughout your body.

“SANS!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow reader, you're such a dick. sans finally musters up enough energy to care about something and you shoot him down!!!


	8. Heart to Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You've got a question. Sans has an answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is more of an interlude bc it ties into my other series

“So my SOUL is purple?”

“yeah.”

“What about yours?”

“monster SOULs don’t have colors. ours are white. and…right-side up.”

“What?”

“human souls look like an upside down spade. it’s kinda disorienting. but you make it work, somehow.”

“Oh. That’s…weird, I guess. So how come we can’t see your SOUL?”

“it’s a uh, pretty big part of me. when monsters attack, they forcefully draw out someone’s SOUL to land a hit. pretty rare unless they feel threatened. we mostly just attack with our magic and hit no problem because we’re not made so much of the physical stuff. but humans are different. our attacks wouldn’t do as much damage if we just hit you on your body, so we get your SOULs out first.”

“Hmm. That makes sense. Monsters’ forms are made up of magic, whereas humans are corporeal. Flesh and all that. So…in order for magic attacks to have an effect, you have to take out the one thing that still reacts to it.”

“yep.”

“So then how do you know what color my SOUL is? I’ve never been attacked by any monsters before.”

He scratched the back of his skull. “you get a feeling. humans have fallen down here and their SOULs all embody seven basic traits. through trial and error, lots of research, and some…fighting, we’ve mostly figured it out.”

“I see.” You leaned back and plopped onto the soft grass, staring up at the bright stones that twinkled so far up above you. “But that doesn’t really answer my question.”

“jeez, pal, i don’t know what to tell ya. when you ACT…when you do things for the monsters around, you just give off this vibe. it’s a color. and that color is purple.”

“What trait does purple stand for?”

“perseverance.”

“HA.” You couldn’t help the gigglesnort that came out. Sans glanced at you, the pinpricks of light trained on your incredulous expression. “That’s a good one. I’m the laziest, unmotivated person I know. Well, besides you, of course.”

He looked miffed at your dismissive tone. “you think about things before you dive in. you care a lot about the others. perseverance isn’t just about getting through something, it’s about learning from your mistakes.”

“Toriel told me that Frisk’s was red.”

“the color of determination. the strongest there is. not…in the way you think. it has a lot to do with humans and magic. the kid pushed themselves to the limit and pushed on despite being beaten down over and over again.”

It was your turn to survey him. His eyesockets had gone black. “Sans?”

“yeah?”

“Does purple suit me? I mean, does it…fit?”

You couldn’t see it. From what he said, perseverance sounded serious. Something that he almost defended when you minimized it. You didn’t know much about monsters and their relationship with SOULs, not enough to judge things, but you weren’t trying to spit on all that he told you. You just didn’t feel like it made sense.

“you really gotta ask that?” He chuckled. “it’s perfect.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know the snowball game just outside of snowdin? i'm a total idiot and realized that the results you get from playing it basically tells you what your soul color is
> 
> what did you get?

**Author's Note:**

> like my works and wanna inspire me to do more? you could always [leave me a tip](https://ko-fi.com/A258IM)!
> 
> i've also got a [tumblr](http://echoflowertea.tumblr.com) where i post all of these works plus minor musings & stuff. you can message me there if you're down to chat!


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